Securom and Setup.exe

[mczajka]

I'm trying to utilize Securom with an .EXE built from Setup Factory or AutoPlay Media Studio. http://www.securom.com/

I'm having trouble with the Setup Factory file. Could anyone tell me what this is programmed in (the final .EXE)? ie. C++, VB, etc.

Securom allows you to tie an .EXE to a physical part of a CD preventing unauthorized copying of the CD.

[Colin]

Re: Securom and Setup.exe

I'm not familiar with Securom, but if it helps, both Setup Factory and AutoPlay Studio are written in C++.

[mczajka]

Re: Securom and Setup.exe

Thanks for the response - I may need even more info. to get this working (ie version's of C++, etc.)

Once an .exe is protected with SecuROM, when the application is run, a unique signature, which is mastered into the CD, is looked for. If it is found, the program runs normally. If not found, an error message is presented. The signature cannot be copied by CD-R burners, thus protecting the application if the user has an illegal copy. More info is located on http://www.securom.com.

[Lorne]

Re: Securom and Setup.exe

The signature cannot be copied by CD-R burners, thus protecting the application if the user has an illegal copy.

Hate to burst your bubble a bit [img]/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif[/img], but that's actually not true. SecuROM is pretty darn good - because it is based on sensing the delays in reading information off the spiral track on a CD, caused by the varying structure that the data track has which result in delays between the delivery of any two sectors. Since this is determined when the CD is created, and isn't affected when it is burnt, it is impossible to create a 1:1 copy of a SecuROM-protected disc (at least not since v4.8x).

But.

There are tools that make it possible, through emulation, to (a) record the delays, (b) store information about the delays on the disc, (c) hide this information from SecuROM, and (d) use that information to "recreate" (emulate) the delays when the data is read. The end result is technically not a 1:1 copy, but is a 100% working copy nonetheless. And the tools make it absolutely easy to do.

Of greater concern is the issue that several users have with SecuROM protected discs. Some drives have trouble reading the delays consistently, and the SecuROM software itself can cause some problems. On many drives it introduces significant delays in initiating data reads whenever the security check is performed.

It is often said that copy protection does more to hinder legitimate users than it serves as a deterrent to illegal copying...but I understand the need to do what you can. (As a wise man once told my father, "locks are only there to keep an honest man honest.") Still, one of the rules of security is to guard against thinking you're more secure than you are.

The sad fact is that any copy protection can be circumvented. There are only varying degrees of difficulty in doing so.

I would personally give some consideration to whether the cost of SecuROM (or any copy protection scheme) is really worth it.